Thorn in my Thumb
by Eve Psyche
Summary: I dunno about this one, I was bored so I wrote it. Read it to find out what its about (warning: yaoi)


Roses have thorns, why don't they ever tell you that before you hurt yourself? Like the foolish child you are you reach out to grab the beautiful thing only to pull back with a yelp of pain. Look up and see the adults shake their heads, telling you, 'you should have been careful'. How can a child be careful and still be a child? 

Taichi mumbled a few choice words before grabbing the nearest thing to stop the blood. He closed his wounded hand over the dishcloth, hoping that the thorns hadn't cut that deep. Hadn't he learned his lesson when he was younger? He had been careful, trying not to touch the down side to the rose. Maybe someone was trying to tell him something? 

"Kari, where is the first aid kit?" He called out. His little sister was just in the next room. 

"Baka, you cut yourself, knew you would. In the bathroom, under the sink." She said in her calm voice, probably not even looking up from whatever she was doing. 

Later, sitting on the couch with a bandaged hand in his lap, he wondered if he should go through with his plan. It was a pretty simple plan. It was a pretty dangerous plan. 

Rule number one about coming out. Never come out in an argument or to hurt someone. He'd try not to. Number two, never come out in a moving vehicle, it may hurt. That's why he would be walking today. Three, a person is more intelligent than a group of people; come out to people one at a time and somewhere private. He knew who he'd be coming out to today, just one person at a time. Yokka, it is your life to live, you only have one, and the bottom line is that you are going to continue living as a gay person no matter what their reaction is. That one was important, really important. If your audience has that deer in the headlights look, don't make any quick moves. Breathe. No two coming out experiences are ever the same. Don't plan on doing anything else for the rest of the day. People will need a lot of time, for the most part, to really think about things. Always have an escape plan. You may not need it, but if you do, you won't be surprised. Have a place to crash for the night, and money you can get to in case a worst-case scenario does occur. People react in sometimes unexpected ways. 

He prayed that he was ready for whatever happened. He had his money in his pocket, his escape route planned. He had most of his courage intact. 

~~~~~~@~~~~~~

"That looks like it hurt." Why did he just feel like screaming 'no duh' at this moment of his life? Oh well, keep calm, breathe baka, breathe. 

"Teaches me to only buy roses without thorns." Taichi smiled to the other boy sitting across from him. The smile felt weak to him, his stomach was in a knot. Eating was hard to do, but he did it, just like everything else, he was going through with his plan. 

Yamato noticed though, noticed there was something wrong with his 'friend'. Taichi had been uneasy since they met up at noon. "So what movie do ya wanna see? There's that new horror filk that I heard is good." Conversation had been mostly a flop too. 

"Aa, sounds good." 

"What's wrong? You sound like you got a frog in your throat. Is anything happening at your home that scares you or something?" 

"No! It's nothing at home! Umm, can we go to the park after we eat?" Taichi knew he sounded panicked but it was the best voice he could come up with. 

Yamato raised an eyebrow as if to question 'why'. But then shrugged and lifted some food to his mouth. "Sure, whatever." 

~~~~~~@~~~~~~

A hour or so later, Taichi found himself slumped on a park bunch, dried tracks along his cheeks. People react in unexpected ways. He couldn't run away as fast as he thought. He was sore now but he'd be bruised later. Itai, he hurt. Really hurt, emotionally and physically. 

Why'd Sora suggest this? He'd thought he should have told everyone else first before telling Yamato, but she insisted that Yamato be the next to know. But then, she had it figured out already and didn't really need him to say it. 

At least most people didn't walk through this part of the park. He'd hate to be seen and laughed at. Would they think he'd been dumped by some girl? If only life was that easy! 

Courage had done him shit, he should have lifted his head and watched the other boy while he confessed. Maybe then he wouldn't be sporting a handprint on one cheek. 

Great, he heard footsteps moving toward him. Sounded like two people. One seemed like they were trying to get away. Weird. The other seemed to give up and moved quickly towards him. 

"Taichi, are you all right?" Sora, just great. Like she'd could help him now. 

"Do I look all right?" He mumbled. "I feel like shit, I probably look like shit and I'm just sitting around like the baka I am in the open crying my eyes out. In no dictionary in the world clarifies that as being 'all right' or 'okay'." He slumped down even more, arms hugging himself and his forehead almost touching his knees. 

Another set of arms encircled him, trying to comfort him. "I'm sorry." 

"Just leave me alone. I've dug my grave, now let me rot." He turned away from the arms and Sora's voice. She couldn't help him now, he just had to sort things out for himself. 

"See what you did!" She exclaimed to someone else. Taichi listened halfheartedly, why couldn't her scold that someone elsewhere? "Ishida, how can you be so heartless!? I thought you could handle stuff...." 

"Please just go away, both of you. I don't feel like this now." Taichi mumbled pitifully, knowing how depressing he sounded. 

He knew the footsteps he heard moving away were Sora's, he didn't know how but he did. He could feel the others eyes on his slumped form, he could almost see how they moved from foot to foot as if trying to decide what to do. 

"You've done enough damage for today Ishida. Why don't you just punch me or something and get it over with?" He kept his eyes closed, finding strange comfort in the darkness. "Just walk away, leave me alone. I won't bother you anymore, don't worry." 

"I'm sorry Taichi, I didn't mean to slap you." Yamato said, taking a couple steps closer. 

"It felt like you did." Bitterness. 

"I didn't! I panicked, I didn't know what I was doing! I was scared, don't you understand?" A few more steps. 

"I don't feel like understanding right now." 

There was a weight on the bench beside him. "Forgive me, please." 

"Please leave me alone." He whimpered, not wanting a repeat of an earlier scene. 

"I won't hurt you." 

"I'm already hurt by you!" 

"I'm sorry." 

"I told you I was in love you and you slapped me! Why can't you just leave me alone?" Please, please, please. 

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you! I was scared and reacted before I could think." 

"What shit." 

Again, a pair of arms encircled him. "I didn't mean it." 

Tears flowed anew. "Then what do you mean?" 

"Suki da." 

More tears and two slumped figures on a bench. One in the lap of the other, curled up like a child who hurt themselves. "Suki da, don't leave me now, onegai?" 

"Aa, I won't, lets go see a romance. Are you up for a romance movie?"


End file.
